Ferrari Formula 1 boss Frederic Vasseur believes the team’s 1-2 finish in the Australian Grand Prix demonstrated it is now in a position to put Red Bull “under pressure”.
Red Bull’s dominance since F1’s return to ground effect cars has seen minor opportunities for rival F1 teams and drivers to succeed and required flawless weekends.
Verstappen proved that in qualifying, snatching pole as Sainz and Leclerc faltered. But in the race, a rear brake failure on the Dutchman’s car allowed Sainz to assume the lead.
Amid Sergio Perez’s struggles in the sister Red Bull, the Spaniard recorded a comfortable win, with Leclerc beating the McLarens to give Ferrari a first 1-2 since Bahrain 2022.
“This weekend is good evidence that when we are putting everything together, and I’m not sure that we’ll be able to do it every single weekend, but that when we are putting everything together, we can put [Red Bull] a little bit under pressure,” Vasseur said.
“It’s when they are under pressure that they will also have more mistakes, that means that we have to continue in this direction.
“We were a bit disappointed yesterday after the Quail because we had the feeling that we could have done a better job.
“Considering that the race was more based on the tyre management and tyre deg, it was not a drama.”
Verstappen’s retirement and a tear-off under Sergio Perez’s floor hampered Red Bull, but the latter believes that his team-mate would have been powerless to beat Ferrari.
However, that makes Sainz’s performance no less impressive given his two-week turnaround from an appendectomy in Saudi Arabia, and Vasseur was impressed.
“For sure Jeddah was a tough weekend for Carlos, a tough weekend for the team,” he added.
“The recovery is mega. You have to keep in mind that two weeks ago he was in the hospital.
“I think even on Friday he was not 100% sure he’d be able to drive and after a couple of laps, he was on the pace.
“Now it’s as if that [operation] never happened and he managed to stay focussed throughout, to round off a sensational weekend.”
Leclerc’s run to second wasn’t as smooth in comparison to Sainz’s romp to victory.
The Monegasque pitted earlier in the first stint to cover off McLaren’s Oscar Piastri, which compromised his efforts to match his team-mate in the middle stint.
Nevertheless, Leclerc was able to settle into the runner-up spot in the final segment of the race, ensuring Ferrari took its first Australian GP 1-2 result since 2004.
That leaves him just four points adrift of Verstappen in the Drivers’ standings and Ferrari the same margin back from Red Bull in the Constructors’ Championship.
“Charles also produced a solid performance because, after a less-than-perfect qualifying,” Vasseur commented.
“He had to manage the tyres, but he was able to fight back thanks to the performance he got from the car.
“He did really well in the first and last stints and the fastest race lap he picked up right at the end confirms the progress we have made in terms of tyre management.”
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